Master Gardener Events & Activities
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Spring 2026 Intern Training Class
We are now accepting applications for the 2026 Berkeley-Jefferson Extension Master
Gardener Intern Training Class!
The course covers many aspects of horticulture, including soils, botany, plant diseases, insects and pests, fruits, home gardens (vegetable and flower), landscape design, and composting. Your tuition fee covers all course material including the comprehensive 350-page West Virginia University Extension Master Gardener Manual. Classes will supplement the reading assignments from the manual.
The 2026 training will be in a hybrid approach. In-person classes are held every other Monday, from 9 AM to 12:30 PM. Classes will be held at the WVU Kearneysville Tree Fruit Research & Education Center at 67 Apple Harvest Lane in Kearneysville. In addition to in-person courses, seven virtual courses will be held over Zoom on Thursday evenings. These can be completed live, or recordings can be watched later. Virtual courses are organized through the state Master Gardener Association, while in-person courses are organized by the local Berkeley-Jefferson chapter.
The course covers many aspects of horticulture, including soils, botany, plant diseases, insects and pests, fruits, home gardens (vegetable and flower), landscape design, and composting. Your tuition fee covers all course material including the comprehensive 350-page West Virginia University Extension Master Gardener Manual. Classes will supplement the reading assignments from the manual.
The 2026 training will be in a hybrid approach. In-person classes are held every other Monday, from 9 AM to 12:30 PM. Classes will be held at the WVU Kearneysville Tree Fruit Research & Education Center at 67 Apple Harvest Lane in Kearneysville. In addition to in-person courses, seven virtual courses will be held over Zoom on Thursday evenings. These can be completed live, or recordings can be watched later. Virtual courses are organized through the state Master Gardener Association, while in-person courses are organized by the local Berkeley-Jefferson chapter.
Application Procedure and Course Timeline
- Friday, November 14: Application Deadline. Submit completed application to the Jefferson Extension Office by this date.
- Friday, December 5: You will be notified no later than this date if you have been accepted as a student.
- Monday, January 12: First day of class. The $100 class fee is due on this date.
The schedule for the class is as follows:
- Monday, January 12 - Introduction class
- Monday, January 26 - Soils and nutrient management
- February 9 - Vegetables
- February 23 - Tree fruit and small fruit
- March 9 - Native plants and landscaping
- March 23 - Turfgrass and water resources
- *March 30 - snow date, only if a prior class has been cancelled due to weather
- April 6 - Pollinators and group presentations
- April 20 - Trees
- May 4 - Tool maintenance, rain barrel construction, distribute exam
- May 18 - Graduation
While learning more about home gardening is a personal benefit, the primary objective
of this program is to share with others the knowledge you will gain from taking
the course. Upon successful completion of the course, you will be required to complete
40 hours of community service within one year to be certified as a WVU Extension
Master Gardener. Thereafter, to remain certified, you will need to complete 20
hours of service and 10 hours of approved continuing education each year.
Paper applications are also available upon request.
Save the Date for Our Annual Seed Swap!
Saturday, January 24, 2026
00 AM - 1 PM
Kearneysville Research, Education, and Outreach Center
67 Apple Harvest Lane, Kearneysville, WV 25430